Power Rangers: Natures Ally
by Mendel
Summary: An unexpected storm changes the future of five people, pushing them down a path they never even considered possible.
1. Wild weather

DISCLAIMER: I don't own the Power Rangers, I'm just a fan.

* * *

* * *

It was a warm and sunny Wednesday in Manta Bay. Kyle Norton was at his favorite cafe, waiting for his friends to arrive. The tall, redheaded, freckled young man was starting to wonder whether he should call his friends when arguing voiced reached his ears.

"Ali, stop it. I won!" "Shut up Jamie! I still won the last 3 games."

Kyle looked up from his magazine when he heard the Carter twins closing and by the sound of it, they'd just finished a game of some sort. They never gave it a rest.

The twins appeared around a corner, James, small, dark-haired and green eyed with a gloating smile on his face, Alice, also small, dark-haired and green eyed, trying to both glare at her brother and ignore him. Both were carrying sports bags. "Hey guys," Kyle called half laughing. "Hey Kyle," came back in a unison answer.

They sat down at the table, dumping the bags at their sides. "So Kyle, what you've been up to?" Jamie barely glanced at Kyle while trying to catch the eyes of the nearest waitress. "Not much, thinking about checking out the beach later." "Nice. Ok if we join? The beach sounds perfect on a day like this." Jamie nodded at his sisters words. "I'll grab a ball or Frisbee with me, give us something to do," he said smiling and nudge his sister. "Stop it Jamie, or I'll hurt you!" "Hehe, you wish." "Guys, stop arguing," Kyle felt like his only purpose in life was to make sure they didn't kill each other. "Just order something so we can go to the beach." Ali and Jamie resumed their previous actions of Jamie gloating and Ali ignoring him, and Kyle felt relieved, at least for now.

A couple of hours later, they were on the beach. Jamie had come up with some sort of Frisbee game he called fetch and involved a lot of running. This game had carried them far down the beach and in the excitement they didn't notice the sky getting darker. When the first drops started falling, they were close to the cliffs marking the end of the beach.

"Damn," said Ali, shaking her now damp hair. "Common. Let's wait in the cave there; at least it will be drier there." They all ran there as fast as they could.

"I didn't know it was supposed to raid today," said Kyle. "It wasn't," said a low voice from further within the cave. All of them jumped and the unexpected sound and turned to face the speaker. A tall, blond-haired girl was standing inner in the cave but now approached them. "Sorry. I didn't mean to scare you," she said with a small smile, "but there wasn't any raid in the forecast." She pulled a newspaper from her side bag and pointed at the local weather report. "She's right," said Ali. "It was supposed to be sunny for a couple of days. No rain till after the weekend." They all looked outside the cave at the rain pouring down.

And then at the guy running towards the cave with a surfboard under the arm. He was as tall as Kyle, with dark blond hair which he now shook before turning around. He jumped a little when he noticed the group already standing in the cave. "…Hey…" He raised a hand in a slow greeting. A thunder roared outside, making them all jump. "Ok, is it just me or wasn't that very close to here," said Ali. "Very, very close," said Jamie.

Another thunder roared and then a lightning struck either the cliff above or the beach outside, causing the ground and surroundings to shake a little, followed by a deafening thunder. The group backed away from the entrance, further in to the cave. When another lightning struck they moved up against the wall furthest away. Yet another lightning flashed and the wall behind them gave away, sending all of them tumbling backwards into a gleaming black hole that had been the wall.


	2. You are the new Power Rangers!

DISCLAIMER: I don't own the Power Rangers, I'm just a fan.

This is a changed version on the chapter I had already posted here, there were a couple of things I wasn't happy with.

* * *

* * *

Jamie was the first one to come around, very unsure of where he was. He untangled himself from the pile as the others came around. "That's gonna leave a mark," Ali mumbled, rubbing her hip. "Hey guys, you ok?" Kyle pulled the surfer guy to his feet and then turned his attention to the girl. "Thanks man, I'm Chris by the way. Didn't get a chance to introduce myself earlier." "No prob, I'm Kyle. Those two over there are James and Alice. And you?" Again his attention was focused on the blond-haired girl. "I'm Samantha," she said a bit shyly. Kyle flashed her a smile.

"Where are we?" Chris looked around. They were in what looked like the beginning of a tunnel, eerie glow illuminating their surroundings. Looking up, he could see the chute they had fallen down. "Hey, the tunnels lead this way." Jamie beckoned them to follow. "Are you sure we should go further in?" Samantha sounded a bit worried. "I doubt we'll get out the same way again," said Jamie glancing up at the hole. "Let's go," Ali started walking down the tunnel and Jamie followed. Chris and Kyle just shrugged their shoulders and then headed after the twins. Samantha stood still a little longer before finally hurrying after them.

As they walked further down the tunnels, the illumination grew stronger and stronger, giving them better and better view of their surroundings. The tunnels were only a few meters high but wider. "You know, this doesn't look like a natural wall. I think it's manmade." Chris ran his hands over the wall on one side. Kyle and Samantha stopped next to him as well while the twins went on and around a corner. "Why would someone make a tunnel down here? I've never heard about anyone working on anything here." Kyle looked at the other two. "Neither have I." Samantha said stroking the wall absent minded. "Where did the other two go?" Chris looked around. "They went further I think," Kyle said and headed after them.

He walked around the corner and into Jamie, who was just standing there gaping. Ali stood next to him, staring the same way. "What you looking at, guys…" he said and turned his gaze. "Wow…" A bit further down the tunnel, there was a door. And no ordinary door by the looks of it. It was a heavy steel door, with two columns of colorless stones running down the middle of the door, five on each side. A huge circle was engraved on the door, with some sort of Celtic knot decoration inside it.

Chris and Samantha came around the corner as well. "I'm almost certain these tunnels are manmade…" Chris's voice died out as he saw the door. "You were saying?" Kyle almost whispered. "I wonder what's on the other side." Ali finally said to break the silence. "What are you going to do, knock on it?" Jamie said a bit mockingly. Ali looked at him with a sly grin on her face. "And what if I do?" she said while crossing her arms. "I'll do the dishes or something. I ain't gonna promise too much, I'm not that stupid." Jamie replied after a couple of seconds. He had made that mistake before and had ended up as Ali's personal slave for two whole weeks. "Fine, your dishes for a week," said Ali and started walking towards the door. "Ali…" Kyle sounded uncertain, "are you sure you should be doing this?" "Guys, it's a door." Ali kept up her steady pace until she was only a couple of meters from the door. Then she slowed down and stopped only an arms length from it. She glanced back at Jamie and then reached forward and knocked three times. The loud bangs sounded unnaturally loud in the silence. A few seconds … nothing. A few more … still nothing. Jamie let out a small sigh and realized that he had been holding his breath. "That was exciting," Chris chuckled. They all walked to Ali to take a closer look at this strangely placed door. "I wonder who did this," said Samantha, tracing part of the decorative knot with her fingers. "Good question, and why? I mean, this doesn't look like any door I've seen before, above or below ground," Jamie said. "Common, let's see if we can't open it. I'm curious to see what it's for." Ali started pushing and pulling the door, trying to find any sort of secret handle or locking mechanism. "What are you expecting, a pot full of gold?" Jamie poked his sister. "Ha ha Jamie, very funny. Common, don't you want to know?" Jamie just rolled his eyes before joining in the pushing and pulling.

None of them had noticed how the colorless opaque stones had become more and more transparent, a new pair clearing up for each person touching the door. When Jamie touched the door, the last pair started slowly clearing up. When all the stones had cleared, they got brighter and brighter; shining with what was now a noticeable glow. "Guys…, guys…, I think you should see this." Samantha backed away from the door when she noticed the stones were now glowing. As soon as the others noticed the glowing stones, they backed away as well. "Is that … supposed to do that?" Kyle sounded almost hypnotized. Colors now ran up and down the rows of stones, giving them the impression of watching a rainbow or some wacky party lights, before flashing a bright light and the stones turned off, becoming dark and opaque again. Ali opened her mouth to say something but then the ground trembled just a little and the door seemed to split open down the middle, leaving one row of stones on each side, and it slid easily and quietly to each side, revealing the room behind.

They were standing at the top of stairs at the entrance of a large circular cave, a raised pool in the middle which resembled a natural hot tub. The symbol on the door was repeated on the wall straight ahead, adorning a large part of it. It could also be seen on the ground, with the pool in the center. On the other side of the pool, there was a pedestal with a chest or something on it. Other than that, the cave was empty. The group just stood there looking until Chris finally walked down the stairs and towards the pool. "This place is unbelievable," he said turning in circles. "You can say that again." Jamie walked to the pool and looked down into it. "What is this place?" There was a definite awe in Ali's voice. "This is Moonsilver Cave."

They all turned towards the speaker, a brown-haired woman wearing what looked like a dark orange robe, standing in a side entrance to the cave they hadn't noticed earlier. "Moonsilver Cave?" Samantha said quietly. "And you are?" Chris asked.

"My name is Jaelyn," she replied, "and I am the guardian here." There was pride in her voice. "I don't mean to sound rude, but what could you possibly be guarding here?" Ali looked around as she spoke.

Jaelyn walked to the pool before turning towards them again. "I serve Mother Nature, guarding and guiding her most trusted warriors," she said, making a gesture towards the decorative seal on the wall. "When needed, they are called, and so it has been for generations." She now approached the pedestal. "When all is well, I guard their powers," she faced them again, "until the need arises." They just stared blankly at her.

"And what's that got to do with us?" Chris asked as she stared back at them. "Everything! The call went out and you answered. You have been chosen."

"What?" "Us?" "No way!" "Huh?" Ignoring their protests, she produced a key from within her person to open the chest. She raised the lid, picked up the chest and turned towards them. In the chest, there were five silver bracelets; all adorned with the same seal, all with five clear stones on them forming an X, the largest one in the middle.

Jaelyn walked to Samantha and held out the chest to her, "What is your name, ranger?"

"Umm, Samantha…"

"Choose, Samantha."

Samantha glanced at the others, hesitated and then reached out and removed one of the bracelets. When Jaelyn continued to stare at her, she put the bracelet on her left wrist. As soon as she closed the lock, the stones on the bracelet flashed and the center one turned blood red. All the other bracelets in the chest flashed as well and each now held a small red stone, although their center stones were still clear. "Ruby, the power of fire and heat," Jaelyn said, bowed slightly and walked to Kyle.

Again she held out the chest with the question "What is your name, ranger?"

"I'm Kyle."

"Choose, Kyle."

Kyle reached for one and also put it on his wrist. Again the stones flashed and his bracelet now held a bright green stone in the middle and a red stone. Samantha's bracelet flashed along with the others, one of her smaller stones turning green, and the bracelets still in the chest each with a small red stone and a green stone. "Emerald, the power of earth," Jaelyn said bowing before turning to James.

"James," he replied before she could ask.

"Choose, James," was all the reply he got from her.

Without hesitation, James picked one and put it on. The stones flashed and the middle stone turned ocean blue. The other bracelets flashed as well as a small stone turned blue on all of them. "Aquamarine, the power of water." Jaelyn bowed and then held out the chest for Ali to choose.

"What is your name, ranger?"

"Ali…, well Alice but I prefer Ali."

"Alice, choose."

Ali looked at Jaelyn before reaching out and taking a bracelet leaving only one in the chest. Putting it on, the stones flashed and the bracelet was now adorned with a yellow center stone. As before, all the other bracelets flashed as well before one of their smaller stones turned yellow. The bracelet still in the chest now had color on all the smaller stones but the center was still colorless. Bowing, Jaelyn said, "Sapphire, the power over sky's energy."

"What is your name, ranger?" Jaelyn was now facing Chris.

"Christopher."

"Christopher, choose."

Chris was the last one to be offered the chest, leaving him with no choice but the single bracelet still in there. He put it on and the stones flashed. The center stone turned white and as did the last smaller stones on the other bracelets after they flashed as well. "Pearl, the power of ice and cold." Jaelyn bowed before closing the now empty chest and placing it back on the pedestal and turning around.

"These are your morphers and communicators, and my way of reaching you. You must wear them at all times," Jaelyn added gravely, "because without them, you are powerless." "You know, you must have us confused with someone else. We're not warriors," James said meekly. The others nodded.

"You're wrong. You have a great power within, just waiting to be unleashed, all of you. You are the new Power Rangers!"


	3. Xalene

DISCLAIMER: I don't own the Power Rangers, I'm just a fan.

About the color of sapphires, I did do some checking on wikipedia before starting the story, and there I saw that sapphires can technically be any color but red I think it was. Yellow is maybe not the most common color but possible :)

**

* * *

**

* * *

There was silence as the group just stood there, glancing from each other to their new bracelets and back. Finally, Chris spoke up.

"But why us? I mean, it's not like we're the only people around. Why were we selected and not somebody else?"

"Like I said, the need has arisen, the call has been sounded and you answered. That's how I know you are the Power Rangers."

Ali looked at Chris before speaking, "We didn't mean to come here. We wouldn't even be here if it wasn't for the freaky weather outside…" Her voice trailed off, as some thought was troubling her. "You made the weather happen?" Jamie turned his gaze from Ali to Jaelyn, guessing what his sister was thinking. Jaelyn merely smiled.

"Not personally but yes, I'm essentially the one to blame. You were at the right place at the right time. The fact that you're standing here before me, inside the sealed door is a good enough fact. Only a selected few can open the door, including the Power Rangers."

Samantha was still looking at her bracelet but now looked at Jaelyn.

"What need? You said the need had arisen for the Power Rangers to be called. Why?"

"I serve Mother Nature as do you. It is our duty to keep her safe and sound in her dimension, Náttúra. That is why you have been called. A new evil, Oroga, has come forward, threatening the very balance between life and death, good and evil." It was clear this was very important to Jaelyn. "Mother Nature's most priced possession is a necklace known as the Amulet of Life. She uses it to bring back warmth after a long winter, life at the start of spring. It's the beginning and ending of the circle of Life."

"And this … Oroga … is after the amulet?" Kyle asked.

"Yes. And if he gets it, nothing will be safe."

Jamie gestured at the group as he spoke, "And we're supposed to stop him?"

"As the Power Rangers, you do have the power to do so." There was more confidence in Jaelyn's voice than their voices. "You are not the first ones to be reluctant to believe, but like them, you will find your believe." She walked towards Chris and held out her hand. Chris reached out with his right hand but switched to his left when she shook her head. Taking hold of his wrist, she handled the bracelet.

"This here button," she said, stroking a small button on one side of the bracelet, "is how you communicate with me. And this button," she indicated a button on the other side, "is a teleporter. It has the power to transport you here whenever you need." With that, she released his hand and smiled. "Come, I'll walk you out. I'm sure you need some time to think." She headed towards the door they had opened not that long ago. One by one, they followed her.

They made their way back in silence, all caught up in their thought. When they reached the spot where they had fallen down, Jaelyn placed her hand on the wall and an opening appeared next to her. Inside were carved stepped, leading to the cave above. Reaching the ground level, they could see a warm, sunny day outside the cave. No more rain or lightning. But the storm had left the beach deserted.

Jaelyn walked to the mouth of the cave. "You have a great responsibility, one that you have to fulfill," she turned to face them, "and I have complete faith that you will succeed." They couldn't help but to look at each other with a hint of smiles about them.

There was a small noise outside the cave, just enough to be heard.

"Jaelyn…?" Ali was trying to keep her voice close to a whisper. Jaelyn turned around slowly.

Outside, the only movement was a growing pile of sand, defying gravity as it twisted itself into the form of a humanoid. A swift gust of wind hurled the sand away, revealing what seemed to be a woman. Her clothes, apparently more than one layer, were ripped and ragged, covering a great deal of her body. A rolled up whip was fastened on her hip. What could be seen of her skin seemed parched, creased and cracked. Her hair was very short and dark red. She stretched luxuriously, brushing a few grains of sand from her shoulder and eyed the cave. Jaelyn raised her hand, still with her back to the group, "Stay here." With that she stepped out of the cave and walked a few steps towards the newcomer.

"Jaelyn! My, my my. Don't you look good." There was a great deal of contempt in the woman's voice.

"Xalene. You still look the same." There was no emotion in Jaelyn's voice. "I was lead to believe you had been defeated along with your master."

"Hah, you should know I have my ways. Besides, knowing when to leave a sinking ship is one of my specialties. I have a new master now." An arrogant tone in her voice.

"And whom do you follow so blindingly this time?" Jaelyn asked without sounding like she had any real interest in knowing.

"Master Oroga!" She seemed to consider something, unfastened the whip and rolled it out. "That _will_ _be_ the end of you." She snapped the whip and vanished with a hand gesture.

Back in the cave, there were five unanimous sighs, and then the sand dunes exploded.

Large group of grayish humanoid things, resembling a greatly disfigured mix of a young kid and some very hairy animal, emerged from the clouds of sand.

"Stay where you are," Jaelyn called and then all her attention was on the graymen. With a flick of her left arm, she revealed a bracelet and placed her fingers on all five stones, one finger on each. With an anti-clockwise twist, she turned the seal within the bracelet and crossed her arms in front of her while shouting, "Nature's ally, time to rally!"

For a brief moment, nothing seemed to happen and then Jaelyn was covered by a soft, glowing light. When it faded, it revealed Jaelyn now dressed in a dark orangey suit, with matching colored helm. A thick white line ran down the middle of the outfit, dividing the legs into white and orange. A black stripe outlined the white. There were black lines running from one shoulder towards the chest and back to the other shoulder, creating a triangular shape. The seal from within the cave was centered within that triangular shape. Her helm covered her totally, with the white stripe running across from front to the back. The black visor resembled a knocked over hourglass and above it, the triangular shape was repeated, as was the seal within it.

Raising her right hand up in the air, Jaelyn shouted, "Guardian Ranger!"

The graymen had backed back a little when she went through the transformation but now they seemed to gain confidence again, charging her. Jaelyn made no attempt to avoid them but merely readied herself for their attack.

The first ones to reach her found themselves flying away at a considerable pace as Jaelyn kicked them away. Soon more and more fell upon her, blocking her from the sights of the bystanders in the cave. Before any of them could move and make their presence there known, Jaelyn launched herself up in the air, clearing the crowded circle of graymen, landing up on a sand dune. Left hand trust up in the air as she shouted "Pain of time!" Flashes of light covered her hands for a moment, revealing a nunchaku in each hand when it faded.

With slow twirling, she braced herself again for the attacking graymen. Now, the combination of twirling nunchaku and spinning Jaelyn was making a noticeable dent in the graymen numbers. As soon as they realized that they were dealing with a superior opponent, the remaining graymen scattered, disappearing over the sand dunes and out of view. Jaelyn waited a few moments, in case they'd return, and then she faced to turn the cave entrance. Walking towards the cave, she muttered, "Power down," returning her to her previous look of dark orangey robes.

"Um…, you know…, I don't think I'll be able to do stuff like that…," Samantha's voice was a bit unstable and also loud in the previously silent cave. The others merely let out a nervous giggle.

"There is no need to worry," Jaelyn was apparently close enough to hear, "you are destined to be the Power Rangers, you do have the capabilities!"

"Who was that? Or what?" Kyle was looking past Jaelyn, at the now innocently looking sand dunes. She glanced back before replying.

"Xalene. An old … acquaintance." There was a hint of regret and sadness in her voice.

"But now you've seen what you will be up against. Be prepared any time. And do not underestimate them, never make that mistake." She walked past them, towards the stairs they had ascended not so long ago. She stopped at the top of the stairs and looked at the group.

"Go and live your normal lives, keep your bracelets on. I will contact you when you assistance is needed. And one more thing, you can not tell a single soul about this," her voice was extremely grave, "I do mean it, no one!" And with that she walked down the stairs and the cave wall became as solid looking as before.

Hesitatingly, the group made their way out of the cave, back towards the city. No one spoke. Chris stopped briefly to glance back at the cave before catching up with the others.

* * *

* * *

If somebody didn't understand my try at explaining how the costume looks like, it's a sort of mix of the Operation Overdrive and Mystic Force costume. Just to make it a bit clearer.

There might also be a chance some of the letters I use don't show up on all computers. If that happens, just let me know and I'll trade them out for more international ones :p


	4. The Starkey

DISCLAIMER: I don't own the Power Rangers, I'm just a fan.

* * *

* * *

A couple of days passed without any word from Jaelyn. The boys were sitting at a table outside a café, waiting for the girls. They intended to meet and discuss what had happened on the beach, when they met Jaelyn.

"You know, if I didn't have the bracelet as a proof, I'd have thought it was all a dream." Kyle was focusing hard on the bracelet as he spoke, quietly, so nobody around could hear. Chris nodded a bit absentmindedly. Jamie was keeping an eye on nearby corners, in case the girls would miss them when they'd come.

"Should we be glad we're not hearing from Jaelyn or …?" Chris was now also looking at Kyle's bracelet as if expecting it to do something.

"The girls are here." Jamie's voice brought the other two from their thoughts. Ali and Samantha were half jogging to where the boys were sitting.

"Sorry, sorry. We got a bit sidetracked," Ali had a hint of smugness about her smile but Samantha only shook her head.

Before the boys could ask them any questions, Jaelyn's voice sounded out, clear and horribly loud to the very shocked group.

"Rangers! I need you to come to the cave as soon as possible, something has come up." There was a great deal of urgency in her voice.

Nobody moved, unsure of what do to, till Chris stood up. "Let's go." The others all rose and followed him, heading as fast as they could towards the nearest alley.

Once there, they each placed a finger on the teleportation button. Chris glanced at the others, "Ready to try this?" Four hesitating nods later he added, "Ok, here we go," and pressed his button, as did the others.

A line seemed to outline each person, matching the color on their bracelet middle stone, and then they faded fast from sight, leaving the alley deserted.

The group faded back into sight, standing on top of the stair in Moonsilver cave, with the door to their back. Jaelyn was standing next to the pool, watching them.

"It might be better if you gave us a little warning before communicating with us through the bracelet. I'm surprised the whole café didn't hear you." Jamie was trying to sound a bit stern, failing miserably as he staggered towards the pool. Unsteadily, the others made their way to Jaelyn as well.

"I will consider it," Jaelyn was looking at them with a bemused look, "and don't worry. You'll get used to the teleporting effect."

"Why'd you need us to come here? Chris steadied himself, holding the edge of the pool.

Her face became serious again.

"I did tell you that Mother Nature resides in her own dimension, Náttúra. Most dimensions are open for any traveler, enabling even normal humans to travel from one dimension to the next, without them ever noticing. Other dimensions, like Náttúra and Moonsilver cave, are open only to a selective few." She had been looking at the water in the pool but now looked up at them. "Those dimensions are considered to be a safe haven by those who inhabit them." She reached out and placed her flat palm on the surface of the water, breaking the smooth surface with gentle waves. "Neither Oroga nor Xalene have the power to enter Náttúra through teleportation, they would have done so already if they could. But even best guarded dimensions have got backdoors, some loophole that can be utilized."

Her hand seemed to cause a large wave to ripple the pool's surface. When the water calmed, an image of what looked like a four armed star could be seen in the water. Each of the four tips had different color; green, dark blue, sky blue and red. Each color faded and diluted.

"Náttúra is no exception. There must always be a way for those in need to enter, even if they do not possess the power to do so normally." She gestured at the pool with her dry hand.

"This is the Starkey. It grants its possessor the capacity to open a portal to Náttúra, a way in. It was considered too risky to keep the key in one piece so it was broken up, and each fragment hidden in a different dimension." The key in the water split into four identical pieces, that each flew out of sight in the pool.

"A close watch is kept on each fragment, in case someone finds it. There are people like Xalene out there that should not get their hands on the key. But, even though _we_ know where the fragments are, we are not allowed to go and take them. We are not allowed because we already have the ability to travel to Náttúra. That was one of the conditions set when the fragments were first scattered. We can only keep watch." Frustration colored her voice.

"Then what are we supposed to do?" Jamie looked between Jaelyn and the pool.

"Xalene is going after the fragments. With the key, she could get unhindered to Náttúra. You will have to stop her before she gets her hands on them."

"Where is she?" Chris asked with determination.

Another wave emitted from Jaelyn's hand and an image of a rocky land, with the odd tree here and there. A humanoid shape was wandering between the trees, stopping now and then, as if looking for something.

"She is close to the fragment of earth, in the dimension of Alntrak." She removed her hand from the surface of the pool, erasing any images left. She headed towards the side entrance this time, stopping only to beckon them to come with her.

"Follow me." They all hurried after her.

"We cannot risk having guards where the fragments are hidden, because that would make their hideout less …, well, less hidden. By keeping track, we can intervene if it becomes necessary, making sure the fragment does not leave its hiding place in undesirable hands." The side entrance turned out to be a tunnel, not unlike the one outside the door. There was a smaller cave entrance a short distance down, covered with some cloth, blocking what was inside from view. This was most likely Jaelyn's residence. She didn't stop though but continued towards a bend in the tunnel, where the soft daylight illuminated the walls.

"We might be able to travel between dimensions but we wouldn't have any idea where we were, or even how to go about the traveling part." Kyle stated.

"You do not, at least not yet." Jaelyn glanced back at them with a smile before walking around the tunnel bend. "But _they_ do."

The sunshine outside blinded the group when they walked out of the cave, forcing them to use their arms to shield their eyes from the sun. Once they got more used to the bright light, they saw five creatures standing some distance from them. It was hard to make out what sort of creatures they were but something about them stopped the group where they stood.

"There is nothing to be afraid about. They are on our side." Jaelyn turned to face them. "These creatures have agreed to serve as your mounts in your quest for Mother Nature, as they have done for other rangers before you." Turning her face towards the odd creatures, the smile faded from her lips.

"Gusher has aided blue rangers and will serve you, James." When she said the name, one of the creatures started walking towards them. As it came closer, they got a better look at what it was. It was a horse, strongly built and smelling faintly of the sea. Its hair had an odd color of gray, reminding them somehow of waves at stormy seas. The mane and tail had the same color, only slightly lighter. The eyes were sea green. It could have passed for a normal horse, were it not for its hooves. Thought they were not clearly visible through the thick hair, it was very clear that they were turning the wrong way. This caused James to stare continuously at the hooves till Jaelyn spoke up again, and even then, he couldn't help not glancing now and then at those strange hooves.

"Yellow rangers have benefited from Windwalker's help. He will serve you, Alice." Another creature walked towards them. This turned out to be a horse as well. It wasn't as bulky as the first one but still gave the impression of power. Its hair was close to white, with hints of blue, purple and yellow about it, almost like highlights. The mane and tail were closer to gray, but still with the same highlights about it. The eyes were brilliantly yellow. Even though there was no wind blowing where they stood, its hair seemed to move about slightly.

"Kyle, Mauler will serve you, as it has served other green rangers." The next creature came to them. Mauler turned out to be a big bull, dark brown in color. It was very strongly built, giving the impression of a boulder with legs. Its horns were large, pointy and deadly looking. The eyes had a dark green color about them. Kyle took a small step backwards when the bull closed, not quite trusting it.

"Samantha. Blazer will aid you, like other red rangers." Yet another creature came towards them, leaving only one. This creature turned out to be a horse, like the first two. This one most closely resembled a pitch black Arabian stallion, carrying its head and tail high. Although it was unlikely this horse would ever pass for a normal horse. Its mane and tail were smoldering red, as if they were made from fire. The same went for the hair covering the hooves, giving the impression that it was walking in fire. A hint of smoke emitted from its muzzle when it breathed. The eyes also seemed to be on fire, burning in the sockets. Samantha grew very still as the horse closed.

"Flake serves white rangers, Christopher, and will aid you." The last creature walked towards them. This turned out to be a large wolf, larger than existed anywhere in the normal world, equal to the horses in size. Despite its size, it looked very agile and quick. Its fur was snowy white, making it very bright in the sunlight. The only other color visible on it was its black nose, some markings around the white colored eyes and its very large claws.

Each of the creatures was fitted with some sort of saddle and rein.

"They will serve as your mounts as long as you are rangers. They know the dimensions and can make sure you will not get lost somewhere. Go now; prevent Xalene from getting the fragment. Good luck." With that, Jaelyn turned and walked into the cave. Some time later, and very hesitatingly, the rangers mounted.

* * *

* * *

I just wanted to add where I got the idea for the mounts. Four of the mounts are somewhat based on monsters in d&d. Windwalker is inspiried by a monster called Asperi and Flake is based on Winter wolf. Mauler resembles a Gorgon and Blazer is basically Nightmare. Gusher, on the other hand, is based on an icelandic mythological monster known as Nykur. It does have hooves turning the wrong way around, that is how you are to know it's not a safe horse to ride. It's supposed to live in lakes and runs with anyone that rides it back to a watery grave.


End file.
